THE NIGHT STALKER is a fantastic made-for-TV horror movie. It has so much going for it, including its star, Darren McGavin as the grumpy, permanently-rumpled reporter, Carl Kolchak. Investigating a series of impossible murders, where the victims are completely drained of blood, Kolchak seems like the last person on Earth to be useful in such a case. The police agree. Yet, his old-school doggedness is the heart and soul of the story. Then, there's the killer, played quite convincingly by Barry Atwater. His dark presence was the most realistic portrayal of eeevil on network television at that time, or since! This is a Dan Curtis production, so its high quality should be no surprise. Curtis was unquestionably the king of 1970's horror TV! This could be his greatest contribution, as it was not only a solid, believable vampire tale, but also a huge hit, changing the way TV movies would be made. Scary, suspenseful, funny, and innovative, it holds up well all these years later. Co-stars Simon Oakland as Kolchak's explosive, "heart-attack-or-stroke-waiting-to-happen" boss, Vincenzo, and Claude Akins as the no nonsense Sheriff Butcher. Watch for Larry Linville as -what else?- a doctor, Elisha Cook Jr. as a contact, and lovely Carol Lynley as Kolchak's girlfriend, Gail Foster. Perfection...

RELEASED TO TV IN EARLY 1972 and directed by John Llewellyn Moxey, "The Night Stalker" chronicles events in Las Vegas when the bodies of several young women are found drained of blood. Intrepid reporter Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin) increasingly suspects that something supernatural is at foot, which his bellowing boss finds incredulous (Simon Oakland), as well as city authorities (Ralph Meeker, Claude Akins & Kent Smith). Elisha Cook Jr is on hand as an informant while Barry Atwater plays Janos Skorzeny. "The Night Stalker" was a hugely successful TV movie, which naturally led to a sequel, "The Night Strangler" (1973), and a series that ran for one season from 1974-1975 (20 episodes), not to mention numerous Kolchak books. This original movie was the best of the batch with "The Night Strangler" almost as good and even better in some ways. Both movies established the template (formula) for all that followed. What makes this movie "the best of the batch"? Answer: The streamlined story is full of intrigue, action, ravishing women, horror and suspense; and the jazzy score doesn't hurt. As far as the women go, lovely Carol Lynley is on hand as Kolchak's babe, but not enough is done with her. Nevertheless, there are 3-4 peripheral beauties. The sequel flick and the first episode "The Ripper" followed this pilot's lead in the female department, along with "The Werewolf," but the rest of the series was rather weak on this front. Since this is a TV flick from the early 70s don't expect a much gore. THE MOVIE RUNS 1 hour 14 minutes and was shot in Las Vegas with studio work done at Universal Studios & Samuel Goldwyn Studios, CA. WRITER: Richard Matheson (teleplay) & Jeffrey Grant Rice (story).GRADE: A-

Generally speaking, the 1970s had some good made for TV horror, mysteries and thrillers - I love a few of them. But this I really don't understand the hype over this one. I realize it's a pilot for a short lived series and it's about a vampire but I found it rather boring. Too much washed up reporter trying to get his name back and not enough vampire throughout most of the movie. It does get a little interesting at about 50 minutes into the movie - for me.I was just rather bored with it and had to fast forward to get to the reason I'm watching the film. I wanted to enjoy this film but I did not.I'm giving it a 3 out of 10 for the idea of using a vampire in a pilot TV series.3/10

Taut little TV-scale shocker hits all the right notes as it tells the story of intrepid reporter Carl Kolchak (McGavin) chasing the story of a modern-day vampire (Atwater) whose lust for blood is resulting in several young women dying horrible deaths, and the local police precinct clueless to the culprit or motive. Predictably, when Kolchak attempts to convince the authorities to suspend disbelief ditch the revolvers and arm themselves with crucifixes, he's branded a crackpot and threatened with gaol.McGavin is superb as the irritatingly tenacious media man with the straw hat and loud jackets, whose female acquaintance - Carol Lynley - becomes unwittingly pawned in his ensuing battle with the establishment. Kent Smith plays the DA with appropriate pomp and ambivalence, Claude Akins is the disbelieving police chief whose had a gut full of Kolchak's apparent disrespect, Simon Oakland Kolchak's long-suffering editor, and Ralph Meeker has his close friend and contact, perhaps the only other person who can be convinced that Barry Atwater is a blood-sucking vampire. There's small roles for Larry Linville (pre-Frank Burns), Stanley Adams and Elisha Cook, Jnr rounding out an impressive cast.As a TV movie it's quite compact (75 minutes), so my only gripe is that there wasn't more to enjoy. Fortunately it spawned a short-lived TV series ("Kolchak") and a sequel of sorts ("The Night Strangler") and it's a series worth catching if you have the opportunity. As another reviewer has already telegraphed, there's not a lot of gore to be found here, but the violence remains quite strong by seventies TV standards.